


The rewards after the war

by QuistanC



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Sylvain just loves his friends very much okay?, Their relationship is vaguely hinted at, We deserve more Sylvain/Dimitri content!, so can be read as friendship or romatnic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-24
Updated: 2019-10-24
Packaged: 2021-01-02 09:43:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21159608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QuistanC/pseuds/QuistanC
Summary: After the war is done and over with, Sylvain disappears from the celebrations and Dimitri comes to find him.---Title might change if I come up with a more clever one.





	The rewards after the war

**Author's Note:**

> This was a simple sweet drabble for a good friend of mine after we both lamented over the lack of DimiVain content on the internet, so here we go!

They had won. The war was over, truly and forever over. His Highness and the professor had emerged from the throne room in Enbarr and they had celebrated all night long. However, despite their festivities, it truly hadn’t sunk in just yet. Edelgard was dead and Dimitri was now king of a united Fódlan. A low groan escaped Sylvain as he leaned forward, running his hand through his hair. His head was swimming terribly, but he blamed that fact on the amount of alcohol he had consumed. By the eternal flames, even Felix had gotten so drunk to the point where he had toppled into Sylvain’s lap like the giggling mess that he was and the paladin had to carry him back to his quarter before he embarrassed himself even further.

His face still flushed at the thought of a whiny Felix tugging at his clothes, begging him to stay until the latter fell asleep. In that moment, he had been 9 again and just finished comforting Felix after a nightmare. It was endearing, to say the least. He purposefully ignored the slight pounding of his heart at the whisper of lips against his cheek and a breathy laugh tickling his ear. That was a box better left sealed away in the depths of his mind that he was more than often too lazy to explore.

A low sigh escaped him as he tilted his head back up again, staring at the dark star filled sky. How he had managed to find this spot unoccupied was beyond him. This would be the perfect place for lovebirds to confess and ask for each other’s hand in marriage since the war was finally over. Finally over. It still felt so surreal. Almost as surreal as hearing Dimitri’s laugh ring through the halls again. It tugged at his heartstrings, but in a good way. He had missed his friend’s laugh so much. After they reunited in the Monastery and found that their King had only been a shadow of his former self, it broke all of their hearts. But Sylvain could never blame him. He knew of the burdens Dimitri carried on his shoulders and despite them being as broad as they have gotten, it was still too much for one single person.

Sylvain’s face turned into a grimace at his last thought. He definitely had consumed more alcohol than he should have. He can already hear Ingrid’s taunting following tomorrow. “I told you to stop drinking so much.” For once, she did have a point. His constant wandering thoughts were just proof of that. He grumbled softly and moved to plant his face into his open palm, resting his forehead against the ball of his hand. By the Goddess, he was a mess. Sylvain heaved a low groan of frustration when the shuffling of feet behind him startled him out of his thoughts. Out of habit, he reached for his family’s heirloom – only to remember that he had left in his own quarters. Right, there was no need for a weapon anymore. The only people who would kill him right now were relatives of the girls he had dated in the past five years – not that there had been many. He simply didn’t have the mind to flirt with every girl he saw. As he turned, he was met with the face of Dimitri, an almost hesitant smile on his face. It did funny things to Sylvain’s heart to see those lips curled up into a pleasant expression again, the hair now swept back to reveal more of his face. He blinked for a moment before offering Dimitri a grin of his own – which in return made the other’s smile falter. Oh. He had forgotten that his friend was also capable of seeing through his false joy.

“Sylvain. I was wondering where you had been. Ingrid is ready to tear your head off because she thinks you were taking advantage of Felix’ drunken state.” Sylvain grimaced before turning back to look up to the stars as his King moved to lean against the railing next to him. “Wow, I know I’m an asshole, but I think that’s going a bit too far. Felix is my friend, I could never take advantage of him like that – not that I would ever take advantage of anyone if they were drunk. It’s only half as much fun if the person you are sleeping with is barely coherent. What does she take me for? A monster?” 

Dimitri gave a low sound that resembled a chuckle. “I know you would never do that to him. Not only because he would castrate you tomorrow, but also because your feelings run too—“ Sylvain raised a hand to Dimitri’s face, prompting him to stop. “That’s not something I’m willing to discuss tonight, your Highness.”

_“Sylvain.” _

“What?” Dimitri sighed and shook his head slightly. “We’re alone, stop calling me by my title.” That was certainly easy for his King to say, especially when now, Dimitri resembled the king he is more than ever. Despite wearing a simple tunic, loose pants and his furred coat to fight off the cold, he managed to look regal. It definitely took him back five years, back when the world hadn’t gone to shit. He gave a low hum in thought as he angled his face back down to watch Dimitri, only to find that this blue eye was focused on him as well. A small breath escaped him in a rush. There was a reason why Dimitri had always been sent to literally stare the truth out of Sylvain whenever Ingrid and Felix grew too frustrated with his lies and deceptions. He swore the other was able to stare right through him and directly into his soul, seeing every single vulnerability he hid behind a smirk and a wink. But that might also be his drunk mind speaking.

After a few seconds, Sylvain subtly cleared his throat and turned his gaze back to their surroundings. Despite averting his own gaze, he could still feel his King’s gaze on his face. He prayed that it was dark enough to hide the blush growing on his face. Normally, he didn’t mind his pale skin, but in this moment, he hated his father for having inherited his pale skin and red hair. A thoughtful sound reached his ear and suddenly, there was a shoulder bumping into his. Dimitri’s warmth spreading through his own body and unconsciously, he leaned slightly against the other, soaking in the warmth. A soft sigh escaped him and he was tempted to lean his head against those broad shoulders and close his eyes. A gentle chuckle rang in his ears. “Then why don’t you do it?”

His face flushed deeply at the realization that he had just said this out loud. But despite his embarrassment, he leaned his head down, now very tempted to nuzzle into the warm fur on his friend’s shoulders. “You’re warm.” He muttered, subtly taking in the familiar scent of snow and oddly enough, blood. How that scent had become comforting to him was still beyond him. Perhaps it was because he now connected it with Dimitri and he trusted his King blindly. “Hey, Sylvain.” He gave a low humming sound to show the other that he was listening, but too comfortable to open his mouth to speak. Another breathy sound slipped past Dimitri’s lips and his own lips curled into a warm smile at the sound. It has definitely been too long. “Do you remember back when we were kids how you would always hug me to comfort me?” Now that definitely got Sylvain’s attention. His head moved up from his resting position against the other’s shoulder. He blinked a few times before nodding. “Yeah, you were so tiny back then that you were almost completely hidden in my arms. It was adorable.” 

Now that Dimitri mentioned it, Sylvain realized that they hadn’t hugged since… He could barely even remember. Probably the last time they hugged was when they both desperately needed comfort after the Tragedy of Duscur. Felix had pushed Sylvain away, desiring to deal with his grief on his own and Ingrid… She had shut herself away. That left Sylvain and Dimitri… And Dedue, but the red head had barely considered his friend’s vassal a friend back then.

They had wept all night, holding onto each other and when morning came… Dimitri had refused to hold onto Sylvain anymore. It had almost broken his heart for he had always been a very affectionate person. “I wouldn’t consider myself adorable, not even as a child.” Dimitri frowned, his eyebrows furrowed and Sylvain was tempted to reach out to smooth out the wrinkles between his eyebrows. “You say that, but the way you three often bickered over who gets to snuggle up to me after playing outside in the snow tells me otherwise.” A heartfelt laugh escaped Sylvain before he eventually quieted again when his King’s expression returned into the serene one from before. Maybe he should show his sincere emotions more often.

They both returned to looking out into the night eventually with their shoulders pressed against each other. “It’s really over, isn’t it?” The paladin glanced over at his childhood friend. His breath got caught in his throat. For a moment, the shadow of Dimitri returned, his eye dark with an unreadable emotion. It tore at his heart. Without thinking much about it, Sylvain turned and pulled Dimitri into his arms, pressing his face into the other’s warm neck. “Sylvain?”

“It is truly over. We won. We are alive.” Without his consent, tears began to run down his cheeks and small sniffles escaped him, his grip on his King, no his childhood friend tightening. There was a moment as he waited with bated breath, fearing that he had overstepped his boundaries and Dimitri would push him away. Instead, warm arms wrapped around his back in return, pulling him just a tad closer and tighter against the other’s body. He let out the breath he had been subconsciously holding as he buried himself deeper into the other’s neck, his form beginning to shake. It was finally sinking in. They were alive. They no longer had to fight, no longer had to hide their sorrows, no longer had to hold back. They had lost so much and now they could finally grieve.

The volume of his sniffles eventually increased as the steady stream of tears ran down his face. “Sylvain, is something wrong?” He felt a surprisingly gentle hand tug at his hair, coaxing him to pull his head back to fully look at Dimitri. But before he could take a look at his face, Sylvain had already plastered a grin back onto his face which in return made him frown. His grin slowly faltered at the serious (and worried?) expression on the other’s face. Their arms remained wrapped around each other, the movement of Dimitri’s arms causing his coat to half engulf Sylvain as well. He felt warm, comfortable, so why was he crying? “I’m sorry, it’s nothing, really.” 

“You wouldn’t cry if it was truly nothing.”

“It’s just… It’s been too long.” An expression of understanding dawned on Dimitri’s face before it morphed into something soft, almost gentle. Another sense of nostalgia washed over Sylvain and without thinking things through, his head moved forward, his lips pressing against Dimitri’s eyepatch that still hid his bad eye. They both froze. Sylvain with his lips pressed against the eyepatch and Dimitri unmoving, his grip on Sylvain not even tightening. For a moment, neither dared to even breathe before Sylvain slowly pulled back, mortified. “Dimitri, I’m so sorry, I have no idea what came over me.” They stared at each other for a long moment before his King eventually sighed, one of his hands falling away from his back to reach up to gently cup his cheek. His heart began to pound in his ears again as Dimitri leaned their foreheads together, his eye closing. “At least you stopped crying.”

“Huh?” Sylvain blinked a few times before realizing that yes, there no longer were tears running down his cheeks. Instead, a breathy laugh escaped him as he nuzzled into the warm hand on his cheek, pressing a kiss to the palm. 

“But you are right, it has been too long.”


End file.
